Tag Archives: Matt Greene

Post navigation

Kings general manager Dean Lombardi continued to reward his players with contract extensions. Tuesday, he inked Jordan Nolan to a three-season deal with an AAV of $950,000. Nolan, a 25-year-old forward, has only 24 points in 170 career games in the NHL. He was a member of the Kings’ Stanley Cup championship teams in 2012 and ’14, however. Lombardi has been generous in giving extensions to his players, with Marian Gaborik receiving a new seven-year deal and Matt Greene getting a four-year contract during the last offseason.

Kings coach Darryl Sutter had this to say after defensive-minded defensemen Matt Greene and Robyn Regehr scored second-period goals in a 5-2 victory over the Florida Panthers: “It’s good to see Robyn and Greene score. They don’t get much credit and they give you the blue collar every night. They are our two most consistent defensemen, for sure. It’s always good to see them score.”

The Kings welcomed former teammate Willie Mitchell back to Staples Center on Tuesday night. They gave him his Stanley Cup championship ring and saluted his short but memorable tenure with the team in a video tribute that played on the giant overhanging scoreboard.

They also gave him a reminder of how they used to seize games and make them theirs, taking a 5-2 victory from his new team, the Florida Panthers. The Kings scored four times in the pivotal second period, including two while on the power play.

Matt Greene, Jeff Carter, Marian Gaborik and Robyn Regehr scored for the Kings, putting them firmly in command entering the third period. Each of the Kings’ six defensemen – Green, Regehr, Drew Doughty, Jamie McBain, Brayden McNabb, Jake Muzzin – had a point in the middle period.

Here are three things that stood out about the game:

First, the Kings power play roared to life with two goals in Saturday’s victory over the Ducks and it didn’t slow in the least Tuesday against the Panthers. That’s a good sign for a team that often struggles to score. Period. They got three power-play goals, a season high, in six chances against Florida. Let’s see if they can keep it going Thursday against the Carolina Hurricanes. A strong power play can make a good team great and a great team, well, it makes winning Stanley Cups easier.

Second, Greene and Regehr scored goals. Wait, what? “At first I didn’t think it was ‘Greener,’” Kings center Anze Kopitar said, smiling, when asked about Greene’s first goal since Oct. 19, 2013. “I didn’t know he had that in his repertoire.” Regehr’s goal was his first since Feb. 26. So, that happened, which was a bonus for the Kings.

Third, Mitchell’s return had a surreal quality to it. He signed a two-season, $8.5-million contract with the Panthers during the offseason, but he said Tuesday that the reality of his departure really hit him during the warmup before his Staples Center return. He acknowledged that it was not a comfortable feeling. “Just actually skating out for warmups the first time and you see the signs around,” Mitchell said. “It’s, like, ‘This is real. I’m not playing here anymore.’”

The Kings’ options are limited. They’re nearly hitting their heads on the NHL’s $69-million salary cap for next season, but since they’ve just won their second Stanley Cup championship in three seasons, maybe the best move is keeping their roster relatively intact for 2014-15.

It seemed the minute the Kings announced Tuesday they agreed with Matt Greene on a new four-contract that Willie Mitchell’s days with the team were over. Mitchell is simply caught in a numbers game on defense. The Kings are up against the salary cap for starters, and they have plenty of options if they don’t re-sign Mitchell, a 37-year-old who helped them win two Stanley Cup championships. Mitchell wanted to re-sign with the Kings, preferring to remain in Southern California. He might get one of those wishes if he signs with the Ducks, who could use another veteran D-man.

“I mean, there’s lots of moving parts. I get it. There’s Willie Mitchell the player. There’s the salary cap, and then there’s as a GM you structure your team so, hopefully, you can have success over a long period of time. So I get it. If you’re asking me if I want to play hockey, hell yeah, and to be honest, I think probably this playoffs is the best hockey I’ve played.”

The Kings and defenseman Matt Greene agreed Tuesday on a new four-season contract worth a reported $10.5 million. Greene, 31, was due to become an unrestricted free agent July 1, but the Kings moved quickly to keep him off the open market. It also could mean veteran defenseman Willie Mitchell, who also can become a UFA next week, does not return to the Kings.

Greene has been with the Kings since arriving in a 2008 trade with the Edmonton Oilers, helping the team win Stanley Cup championships in 2012 and ’14. The defensive-minded defenseman had six points, including two goals, in 38 games this past season. He also had four assists in 20 playoff games.

Kings coach Darryl Sutter went with the status quo for Game 2 after saying one day earlier that defenseman Robyn Regehr “probably” would play for the first time since suffering a knee injury in Game 1 of the second round series against the Ducks.

Sutter stayed with Matt Greene on Saturday, keeping Regehr out of the lineup for the 15th consecutive game. Sutter said it was a difficult to put Regehr back into such high-level competition after a layoff that reached five weeks Saturday.

“Darn right it’s a consideration when you think about it,” Sutter said Sunday.

Injured defensemen Willie Mitchell and Robyn Regehr aren’t expected to play for the Kings in Game 2 against the Ducks on Monday. Mitchell could miss his third game after he was hurt in the Kings’ victory in Game 6 of their first-round win over the San Jose Sharks. Regehr was sidelined in the first period of Game 1 Saturday.

Matt Greene replaced Mitchell and Jeff Schultz is set to fill in for Regehr.

Schultz said he spoke briefly Sunday with Kings coach Darryl Sutter about his role.

“He just said, ‘Just go out there and play,’” said Schultz, who spent the regular season with the Kings’ American Hockey League team in Manchester, N.H., and was recalled last week after Mitchell was hurt. “It’s hard to replace a guy like Robyn, but I feel like I’m capable of doing a similar job of what he can do.”

Of watching Game 1 of the series from the sideline, he said, “It looks like a lot of fun out there. The Ducks are a team that is heavy on the forecheck and they come hard. It’s just a matter of getting back, moving pucks up and getting out of our zone.”

Sutter declined to speak about the conditions of Mitchell and Regehr. “It does me no good to talk about the injured players, just helps the other team,” Sutter said after the Kings held an optional skate at the El Segundo HQ.

Kings defenseman Willie Mitchell won’t play in Game 7 of the Kings’ first-round playoff series against the Sharks tonight in San Jose. Mitchell was injured during the Kings’ victory in Game 6 at Staples Center. Matt Greene will play for only the second time in the series. He played in Game 2 and was a minus-4.

“It’s always fun to play a high-stakes game like this,” Greene said after the Kings’ skate Wednesday morning. “I want to come in and help out. Just have to establish our game and get a good forecheck and turn pucks over. Did a good job of that in Game 5. Play good defense. Play a good team game.”

Veteran defenseman Matt Greene participated in Thursday’s non-contact practice, but there’s still no timetable for his return to the Kings’ lineup from an upper-body injury. He remains on the injured-reserve list and it certainly seemed unlikely he could play in Saturday’s game against the New York Islanders.

“Feel good. I feel good now,” Greene said. “You can’t replicate skating. The first couple of days are always tough. It’s good though. Coaches get out there and pound you for the first couple of days. It’s no fun, but it’s good. I think I’m getting closer (but) I don’t think you can put a date on it yet.

“But I think I’m getting closer. I’m getting more comfortable.”

Greene sat out all but five regular-season games last season after undergoing back surgery. This latest injury is unrelated to his back troubles.

Post navigation

Who is behind Inside the Kings blog?

Elliott Teaford is an award-winning hockey reporter based in Southern California and witnessed the L.A. Kings win the Stanley Cup in 2012 and in '14. He grew up playing outdoors on the streets of Philadelphia. He also watched the Flyers bully their way to consecutive Stanley Cups in the 1970s, and makes no excuses for their quasi-legal play.

Comments policy

We invite you to use our commenting platform to engage in insightful conversations about issues in our community. Although we do not pre-screen comments, we reserve the right at all times to remove any information or materials that are unlawful, threatening, abusive, libelous, defamatory, obscene, vulgar, pornographic, profane, indecent or otherwise objectionable to us, and to disclose any information necessary to satisfy the law, regulation, or government request. We might permanently block any user who abuses these conditions.

If you see comments that you find offensive, please use the “Flag as Inappropriate” feature by hovering over the right side of the post, and pulling down on the arrow that appears. Or, contact our editors by emailing moderator@langnews.com.